Anduril
(click on the image for a nicer view in lightbox) Sometimes getting the right shot is all about being there. I’m not going to brag about this photo being some kind of amazing composition…because in reality, it’s pretty simple. At the time I was actually wishing I had something better to get into the frame than just a few saguaros. Like maybe a glacial lake in the Himalayas (whaaat?) But sometimes all it takes for me is a killer sky. And killer skies aren’t always easy to come by. I remember seeing photographs and always being jealous that they somehow [...]
Foundations of Stone
(Looks nicer in lightbox…just click on the image for a larger view) – Usery Mountains, Apache Trail, Superstitions One thing becomes evident when you explore the mountains and cliffs of the Arizona desert: The stuff under the ground appears to be made from jagged rock and rising stone. Everywhere you look, you see giant precipices bursting out of the earth…and you realize that the soil is hiding some amazing beauty that we may never see. The title of today’s post is from the Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers soundtrack. Weird how just kind of browsing for a title [...]
Sticks and Snow
Lately the blog has been returning to more and more of my usual landscape and storm shots. We’ve had quite a few nice winter storms since December and it’s reignited my passion for this stuff. I was out last weekend a few times, and this weekend I went out Sunday morning to chase after some high desert snow, but it was a lot higher than I was hoping. This image is from back in late December when we had daytime highs of around 36 degrees and some fun snow storms along the Beeline Highway. One thing that helps your landscape [...]
Precipice
I feel like I’m running out of titles for blog posts. Part of the problem is I tend to do these things on the fly, without much preparation, so I don’t take a whole lot of time to think about them. I usually just write what’s on my mind when I sit down and finally start typing. Like today. On our last few photowalks in downtown Phoenix, I noticed my buddy Rick Young with a headphone stuck in one ear as he wandered around looking for shots. It was interesting and I thought that sounded kind of cool. My car has [...]
Then the morning comes
(Website note: My images are now clickable and displayed in a handy-dandy lightbox. Please check it out, let me know what you think!) When you are advancing in your career or just going down the path of life, people tell you never to look back…just worry about what’s ahead. What’s coming. No need to relish on mistakes or even past victories…it’s all about the future. I think photography may be the one place where that advice is completely wrong. I wont even get into the benefits (for me) of seeing where I’ve come from and how I’ve changed, but mainly [...]
Two spikey peas in a pod
I’ve been having a ton of fun this fall/winter playing around with urban exploration, processing grungy images and discovering my love for shooting in downtown Phoenix. But I absolutely miss the summer storms. Big time. I feel like I’ve learned something about the kind of photography I want to produce when it comes to weather images and now I’m anxious to see that vision come alive in the upcoming monsoon season. I love this picture. It was shot during the cold weather that brought some snow storms to the deserts in late December. One of my favorite moments in weather [...]
Cliffs of Insanity
Despite my absolute love for stormchasing, lightning and severe weather…a simple drive out to the Superstition Mountains before dawn when there is only a bit of rainy clouds in the forecast…can be just as beautiful and inspiring. I love the awesomeness of a lightning storm. The adrenaline when I’m trying to get to a good spot for a tripod setup. The morning I took this photograph wasn’t like that. It was relaxing. Lazy. Rolling clouds, some rain in the distance…but nothing thrilling or exciting. Yet I ended up having just as much fun as I usually do. I don’t believe I [...]
Air Produce
The day before our chilly, 6am Urban Phoenix Photowalk takes place, figured I’d drop one more image from one of my excursions down there before Christmas. We’ll probably be walking by this building once again and I’m hoping to find something new and different about it that I missed before. Before I go on…I figured I’d talk a bit about clouds. Not a surprise right? My buddy Bob Lussier (whom I apparently am in love with since I’ve now linked to him twice this week) is just finishing up a series he calls “Off-Season.” It’s a fantastic look at what [...]
Into the light
You know me…a hint of weather, a mention of rain…and I can suddenly feel the juices get flowing again. When I go weeks and weeks at a time with nothing but blue, sunny skies…I kind of forget how much I love being out there chasing storms. Monday was a day off for me…I wanted a nice little three-day weekend before I start my new job today. As amazing luck would have it (or maybe a nice little gift from the man upstairs), we actually had a storm system blow through the state that morning and afternoon. Clear skies today and [...]
A new year begins
Well…here we go. It’s 2011 and time to forget whatever I did last year, start with a clean slate, try some new things and see where it all goes. Okay, kind of hard to do if you realize I posted the color version of this photo on Friday, the last day of 2010. Where is the new? There is a reason of course, and I think a good one. Last year I was inspired by Mitch Dobrowner’s storm photography. His work is absolutely incredible, powerful and spellbinding. He’s naturally become my favorite storm photographer. There is a picture in his [...]
Mike is a Phoenix Wedding Photographer based in Arizona and can be contacted via all the normal methods and then some.